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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29321193">Trains Caught in the Show</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oro_the_Ranger/pseuds/Oro_the_Ranger'>Oro_the_Ranger</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Starlight Express - Phillips/Stilgoe/Webber</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/F, Fluff, Gen, also also warping in wood takes the form of stomach aches because......reasons, also cb is part of electra's entourage because of a personal hc i have, belle the drinking car is going by sherry because i said so</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 10:02:28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,005</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29321193</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oro_the_Ranger/pseuds/Oro_the_Ranger</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Blizzard hits the train station known as the Apollo Victoria, and everyone has to work together to stay warm.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Mama/Belle, some Rusty/Pearl if you squint</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Trains Caught in the Show</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Winter hit the Apollo Victoria hard. The snow piled up outside and the temperature felt like it was dipping below zero.</p><p>“Okay, headcount,” Mama announced in the relative warmth of the shed. “Whose here, and how are you feeling?”</p><p>“Rocky 1 here,” a tired hand raised in back, “and I don’t feel so hot.”</p><p>“Same for 2.”</p><p>“And 3.”</p><p>Sure enough the three boxcars were huddled together, arms wrapped around their stomachs and abdomens.</p><p>“Okay, let me get look at you,” Mama made her way over to the trio. “Rusty, check on the rest for me, please.”</p><p>Rusty scooted up to where Mama was originally standing, seemingly unaffected by the cold.</p><p>“Is Dustin here?” he announced with a shocking amount of enthusiasm. He seemed to be the only one with a hint of high spirits.</p><p>“Over here!” Dustin waved from the far wall of the shed. “Flattop is here, too.”</p><p>There was a grunt that Rusty assumed was Flattop.</p><p>“How are y’all feeling over there?” Rusty cupped his hands together and shouted the question.</p><p>“Pretty good, actually,” Dustin yelled back.</p><p>“Kinda chilly,” Flattop mumbled.</p><p>“What did Flattop say? Is he alright?”</p><p>Flattop looked like he was about to say something rude, but Dustin hastily covered his mouth.</p><p>“He’s fine!” Dustin called out, “We both are, but the rails are bit…frozen? Is that right?”</p><p>At that everyone looked down at the rails. A thin sheet of ice covered the iron and continued to the wheels of the cars. The steam trains seemed unaffected by this, ice melting where they went.</p><p>“Blizzard’s out of control,” Mama shook her head. “The Rockies are starting to warp. All this cold isn’t agreeing with their wooden selves.”</p><p>“The ice doesn’t seem to be affecting us though, Mama,” Rusty looked down at his wheels, a puddle of water starting to form beneath him. Rusty couldn’t help the nervousness that rose within him. His last encounter with water gave him the corroding condition he was named after.</p><p>“That’s because we’re powered by steam!” Mama patted her engine, red with fire, “The coal that heats the water that gives us energy also keeps us warmth in weather like this. Now hand me those big towels over there.”</p><p>Rust looked towards where she pointed and sure enough there were big towels hanging from a hook. Were those always there? He grabbed them and handed them to Mama.</p><p>“This won’t be as good as kiln or the like,” she said while drying off each of the Rockies, “but it’s something. Rockies, couple up to me to keep warm for the rest of the day.”</p><p>All three nodded tiredly and did as they were told. Mama turned back to Rusty and said, “Go pick up the coaches and bring them here. You should be alright with the power of steam on your side!”</p>
<hr/><p>The coaches’ area of the yard had limited covering compared to the shed that housed the freight cars. Normally this wouldn’t be a problem as the coaches only came here when they weren’t holding people, and there was just enough covering to protect them from the elements. But the covering provided little protection against the abnormal blizzard the coaches were stuck in.</p><p>“I can’t move my wheels,” Buffy shivered.</p><p>“Wait, I think I got someth—nope, never mind,” Ashley struggled with her lighter. “Fine time for this thing to fail.” She tossed over her shoulder and pulled out a cigarette. Realizing her mistake, she bent to retrieve the lighter again.</p><p>“Do you hear something?” Pearl spoke up, putting her hand to her ear. The rest of the coaches followed.</p><p>There was a distant whistling almost drowned out by the howling winds.</p><p>“Isn’t that just the wind?” Carry asked through trembling teeth.</p><p>“No, wait, just listen,” Pearl pleaded.</p><p>
  <em>Woo woo!</em>
</p><p>“I know that whistle anywhere! It’s Rusty!” Pearl would have jumped in excitement if she wasn’t frozen to the tracks.</p><p>Sure enough, Rusty emerged from the snow, singing his signature whistle. His enthusiasm was as warm as the fire that fueled him, pushing through the blizzard like it was a mild breeze. Pearl stretched out her shivering hands and Rusty wrapped his warm ones around hers. He was so warm Pearl thought she was going to melt, and didn’t catch herself wrapping him into a hug until it was too late.</p><p>“Oh, sorry!” she pulled away, flustered.</p><p>“It’s alright!” Rusty said, his face blushing. “Which coaches are here?”</p><p>Buffy and Carry raised their shivering hands with a weak “Here!”</p><p>“I think all my drinks are frozen…” Sherry the bar car fussed with her hairpiece, “I hope nothing explodes.”</p><p>“My lighter isn’t working; can I use one of your coals?” Ashley asked, an edge in her voice.</p><p>Rusty moved to each of the coaches, holding their hands until they warmed. He was extra careful with Sherry, but at least one of her glasses exploded with the sudden change in temperature. He helped pull the glass out of her hair, and while Rusty didn’t like to encourage Ashley’s smoking addiction he decided to cut her some slack and lit her cigarette for her. Yet, something seemed off…</p><p>“Wait, where’s Dinah?” Rusty asked, looking around as if she would appear out of thin air.</p><p>“She went with Greaseball for a ride,” Pearl answered. “Bad time for a date, if you ask me.”</p><p>“Do you think she’s going to be alright?” Ashley asked, nervously dragging her cigarette.</p><p>Rusty rubbed the back of his head. This ended up being a little more than he bargained for.</p><p>After a while, Rusty spoke, “Let’s get you all over to the freight shed first. It’s a lot warmer than what’s here.”</p><p>The coaches all nodded in agreement and coupled up to each other with Pearl coupling with Rusty. All connected, the coaches felt considerably warmer and could finally move their wheels again. Rusty led them across the yard through the snow, whistling all the way.</p>
<hr/><p>When Rusty came back to the shed, the first thing he noticed was that it was much warmer that it was before. He could feel the snow that piled on top of him begin to melt into water. Rusty stayed up front just long enough to open the door to the shed, and then he uncoupled Pearl, moving to the back of the train of coaches. All the coaches eagerly entered the shed, egged by the warmth emanating from inside, but Rusty stayed outside.</p><p>The source of the warmth was the steam pumping from Mama as she moved the freight around the shed. All three Rockies were covered in large blankets, and Dustin was happily handing coal to Mama to fuel her fire.</p><p>“Welcome, girls!” Mama called out to the coaches, “Glad you all could make it!”</p><p>“Well, not all of us,” Buffy mumbled, reluctant to lose the good cheer.</p><p>“Whose missing?”</p><p>“Dinah is still out there, Mama,” Pearl answered. “She went out with Greaseball before the blizzard hit.”</p><p>“Ah, of course she did… Is Rusty still out there?”</p><p>“Yes?”</p><p>“Good, he’s going to need to go bring them back like he did you coaches. Go with him on this one, Pearl. You might be able to convince Greaseball and Dinah better together than if Rusty goes alone.”</p><p>Pearl nodded excitedly and turned to go back to Rusty.</p><p>“One more thing!” Mama called out to her.</p><p>Pearl turned around to find Mama pushing some coals into her hands.</p><p>“Rusty’s going to need more fuel, it’s going to be a long ride,” Mama told her.</p><p>“Thank you, Mama,” Pearl said, and carried the coal back outside.</p><p>Rusty was waiting about a yard away from the shed. Snow had piled back on him, and Pearl could see that the melted ice had frozen over again on him.</p><p>“Mama said to give you this,” she said as she handed the coal to Rusty.</p><p>Rusty thanked her and put the coal right into his engine. She could see he was even more energized than before, impressive considering he didn’t seem tired by the blizzard at all.</p><p>“Mama wants me to go find Dinah and Greaseball, right?” Rusty asked her.</p><p>“Yes, and I’m going with you!”</p><p>Rusty’s face seemed to heat up a bit, though Pearl assumed it was the new coal doing the heating on his cheeks.</p><p>“Are you sure? In all this cold?”</p><p>“Of course!” she held his hands in hers. “Where you go, I go. Friends have to look after each other, right?”</p><p>Rusty nodded enthusiastically, snow falling from his hat. “Right!”</p>
<hr/><p>Unbeknownst to the crew of the Apollo Victoria, Greaseball and Dinah weren’t the only trains that wrongly assumed today would be a good day for a date. Electra and all of his components had thought to take the day to enjoy the pine forest that was known for its beauty on winter days, but no one’s weather report predicted such an aggressive blizzard. Thankfully, Electra had a heating system.</p><p>Krupp, second from the back, noticed the feeling of digits clenching and unclenching his couplers. A very dangerous thing to do at these speeds in this weather! He inclined his head to the caboose behind him.</p><p>“Are you holding up alright, CB?” he asked.</p><p>“10-7, buddy,” CB said through chittering teeth, “Think I’m starting to warp.”</p><p>“Oh, man! I forgot you were made of wood! Here,” Krupp turned sideways, one hand holding the component in front of him and the other holding one of CB’s hands, “We’ll move you closer to the front where it should be warmer. Might want to discuss with Wrench about converting to chrome if you’re comfortable with it.”</p><p>“3s and 8s, good neighbor,” CB saluted weakly with his free hand.</p><p>The components moved CB towards the front of the train, stopping him between Electra and Wrench. Yet, despite being closer to Electra’s heating system, CB wasn’t feeling any warmer. Wrench started to inspect CB while coupled to him, but then shot a look towards Electra.</p><p>“Electra, is your heating system working?” she asked, brows furrowed.</p><p>“Why shouldn’t it b—” Electra was caught off by a spray of sparks erupting from him.</p><p>He came to an abrupt start, squishing all the components together with the continued momentum. Wrench scooted between him an CB for a bit and inspected him.</p><p>“Looks like some ice got into your system,” she stated, “I could repair it now, but it would just happen again until we get to some cover.” She moved back behind CB, pushing him closer to Electra who immediately latched onto him in a tight hug.</p><p>“So, we’ll need to signal for someone to help us get hitched and move?” Volta asked, unaffected by the loss of heat.</p><p>“Oh! I have just the thing!” Joule excitedly pulled out an explosive of some sort, causing Purse who was behind her to inch away. “This flare should not only let anyone within several miles know that we’re here, but also keep us warm!”</p><p>Yet as she activated the “flare” a rolling candle shot several miles into the sky, crackling and exploding above them. Before anyone could say anything about it, Electra spoke up:</p><p>“That’s not a bad idea, actually.” He pointed to Joule, “Send those flying every 2 minutes or so.” He looked down at CB who he was still cuddling. “How are you feeling? Is your radio still working?”</p><p>CB looked up at him, smile pained but eager, “Affirmative, good buddy! What’s the 10-5?”</p><p> “Send a SOS or something similar across the channels you know other trains listen to. With any luck we’ll have someone come to our rescue in no time.”</p>
<hr/><p>Rusty and Pearl were starting to get worried when they started to reach the end of the Apollo Victoria yard and still couldn’t find Greaseball and Dinah. It wasn’t until they caught a vague outline of a diesel out in the distance did they even get a hint of the two lovebirds, and even then the worry lingered as they got closer to the pine forest.</p><p>
  <em>Woo woo?</em>
</p><p>No response.</p><p>Rusty and Pearl shared a look of concern before Rusty tried again.</p><p>
  <em>Woo woo?</em>
</p><p>“Rusty! Is that you?”</p><p>“Dinah!” they both exclaimed together.</p><p>Rusty picked up the pace, and through the snow they saw a waving hand from a very distressed dining car behind a very upset diesel engine.</p><p>“Are you two alright?” Pearl asked.</p><p>Greaseball said nothing, but Rusty could see his jaw grind. Dinah looked at her man in distress and then looked back at Pearl and Rusty.</p><p>“Something’s wrong with Greaseball,” she told them. “He just slowed to a crawl and I can tell he’s trying to say something but he can’t.”</p><p>“You don’t think his oil froze, do you?” Pearl asked Rusty. Greaseball must have heard her because they could see his eyes bulge.</p><p>“I didn’t know oil could freeze,” Rusty murmured. “But it could definitely get sluggish and sticky.” He remembered when he tried to use an oil can on his rust when he first contacted it. Specifically, he remembered it being a cold day and the oil came out as sludge that just made him feel gross and did nothing for the rust.</p><p>“Maybe if I try…?” Rusty trailed off as he stopped parallel to Greaseball and Dinah.</p><p>Pearl was holding Dinah’s hands, rubbing them together to get her warmed up while Rusty sized up Greaseball.</p><p>Suddenly, Rusty grabbed Greaseball into a hug!</p><p>Greaeball’s eyes glared down at Rusty, and Rusty met his with equal aggression.</p><p>“Don’t get the wrong idea, I’m just warming you up,” Rusty said, fire boiling.</p><p>With a crack Greaseball’s jaw open, “Yeah, you wish, steam train.”</p><p>Dinah’s face brightened, “Greaseball! You can speak again!”</p><p>With a flex or two, Greaseball regained motion in his arms. As Rusty backed away, Greaseball stretched his legs, finding they could move without sticking.</p><p>“A’ight, Rusty,” Greaseball said, not meeting Rusty’s eyes, “You did good. Don’t mention this to the gang, got it?”</p><p>“What makes you think I talk to them ever?” Rusty retorted.</p><p>An explosion in the sky interrupted their little spat. Pearl in particular seemed excited by it.</p><p>“That’s one of Joule’s fireworks!” she exclaimed, eyes practically sparkling with excitement.</p><p>Soon after both Greaseball and Dinah tilted their heads as if they were listening to something. Rusty could faintly hear the crackling of a radio coming from them.</p><p>“That’s CB!” Dinah exclaimed, “Sounds like Electra and his components are stuck out in the cold, too!”</p><p>“How is that possible? Isn’t Electra top of the line?” Pearl asked.</p><p>“Sounds like another trick,” Rusty grumbled.</p><p>“Give me a second,” Dinah raised a finger and with her other hand cupped over her mouth she mumbled something into her own radio’s receiver. A crackling signified a response, which she relayed, “He says Electra’s heating system is broken and they’re stuck on the rails.”</p><p>“He said that all in CB radio code?” Greaseball questioned.</p><p>“It was implied,” Dinah shrugged.</p><p>“It still sounds suspicious,” Rusty crossed his arms, his sourness over his last encounter with CB clear on his face.</p><p>“I know what you mean, but CB couldn’t pull anything even if he wanted to.”</p><p>“What do you mean?”</p><p>“He’s made of wood, remember? With all the snow and cold, he’s probably doubled over ‘n’ warping right now.”</p><p>Rusty hated to admit it, but Dinah had a point. This errand was taking even longer than he hoped for, but he couldn’t just leave a bunch of trains out in the cold.</p><p>Seeing the hesitation in Rusty’s face, Greaseball spoke up, “Look, I can take Dinah over to the freight shed. That’s where everyone is, right? You go help Electra. We’ll be fine now that we’re all warmed up.”</p><p>At least Greaseball was being sensible right now as opposed to his usual difficult self. Rusty nodded in agreement, and Pearl coupled back to him. They waved good-bye to Dinah and Greaseball as they went their separate ways.</p>
<hr/><p>Well into the pine forest, Pearl thought to herself that this would actually make for a very romantic setting when it wasn’t drowning under a blizzard. Rusty had given up whistling when she told him Electra was incapable of whistling back, so they plowed through the snow in silence. It was not so bad this way, the cold wind was making Pearl feel tired despite Rusty’s heat and she couldn’t think of a thing to say.</p><p>Several bright LED lights shone ahead of them, and Rusty didn’t need any prompting to know it was Electra and his crew. As they got closer, they saw that Electra was standing on the rails at a weird angle, but definitely seemed to recognize them…or at least one of them.</p><p>“Pearl! It’s good to see you again!” He waved toward her, and she waved back. “And….there’s you.” He gestured vaguely at Rusty.</p><p>“Seriously?” Rusty said in a deadpan, “Do you really not remember me?”</p><p>“I don’t know any steam trains,” Electra responded flippantly.</p><p>“We raced against each other! It was really intense!”</p><p>“I have no memory of this.”</p><p>“Rusty’s here to help, Electra,” Pearl piped up, “He can warm you all up enough to get you back on the tracks again.”</p><p>One of Electra’s components peered over behind him. Pearl told Rusty their name was “Wrench” as Rusty was never formally introduced to them. “Is there a shelter nearby? We’re pretty far from Electra’s yard and we need to make urgent repairs out of the snow.”</p><p>“There’s our freight shed back at the Apollo Victoria,” Rusty suggested. Electra and his components seemed to grimace in unison at that.</p><p>“Well, it’s better than nothing,” Wrench mumbled.</p><p>Rusty started to do the same to the components as he did with the coaches, going to each train and offering to help warm them up. With this he saw why Electra was standing so awkwardly, and any concern that CB might try to hurt him vanished. The caboose had one hand up to his earpiece while his other arm was coiled around his stomach. Electra had one of his own arms wrapped around CB in a vain attempt to protect him from more snow and the wind. CB’s signature smile was starting to slip, which unsettled Rusty more than anything; this guy had kept a wide smile after being in the middle of a major crash, yet now…</p><p>It took CB a while to see recognize Rusty was there, but when he did, he took his hand away from his earpiece and tried to get his smile back in order despite his chattering teeth. “Hello, Rusty!”</p><p>“Hello, CB,” Rusty called back. Electra didn’t let Rusty touch his electric self, but he knew CB was going to need some assistance. “You have a kitchen stove in you, right? Would you mind if I light it?”</p><p>“10-10, Rusty, but,” CB patted at his side doors, “sealed shut, remember? Going to have to try another entrance.” He shrugged one shoulder in Rusty’s direction to indicate the door the humans used there. Rusty noted it was too small to put in one of his coals through.</p><p>“Give me a second,” Rusty moved with Pearl towards Joule who was still setting off fireworks. The freezer car Pearl referred to as “Volta” seemed to be supervising her. “Hello, um,” Rusty tried introducing himself to the duo but he would be lying if he said he wasn’t intimidated.</p><p>“Can we borrow one of your lighting sticks or something, Joule?” Pearl perked up behind Rusty.</p><p>“Sure thing, Pearl,” Joule handed a stick to Volta who handed it to Pearl who handed it to Rusty.</p><p>“Thank you,” Rusty said, and the duo nodded in response. Joule continued to let loose fireworks.</p><p>He returned to CB, and told him what he planned to do. CB nodded to show he was fine with it. Rusty placed a hand on CB’s shoulder and tried to open the small door there, but the wood was so warped it was giving him difficulty. He gave it a stronger tug, and ended up taking the whole door with him, causing CB to wince and Electra to pull him closer and glare harshly at Rusty.</p><p>“Oh my gosh, CB, I’m so sorry,” Rusty panicked. CB waved him off, but he could tell his smile was much more forced.</p><p>“Don’t worry about it, I’ve had worse.”</p><p>Wrench held out her hand and curled her fingers to indicate to Rusty to give her CB’s unhinged door. Rusty placed it gently into her hand, and she tucked the door away in one of her pockets. CB extended his now open shoulder again, and Rusty looked inside to see where his kitchen stove was. Placing the stick inside his engine, he produced a small flame and stuck it through the door and into the stove. It took a while, but soon the stove started to heat, and Rusty withdrew the stick and shook out the flame.</p><p>Stepping back, he could already see some improvement. CB was starting to regain some color to his face and his smile seemed to smooth out into something more genuine.</p><p>“That’s the most I can do for now before we get you dried off back at the Apollo Victoria,” Rusty informed him, “I’m going to see how the rest are doing.”</p><p>CB nodded and gave him a look Rusty hadn’t seen on him before but couldn’t put his finger on it.</p><p>The rest of the components seemed to be doing okay. Wrench was warmed by being close to Rusty for so long, Volta was completely unaffected by the snow and ice, and Joule’s fireworks kept her free. The last two who Pearl called Purse and Krupp were the only ones that needed assistance, and while Purse would only be warmed by Pearl, Krupp seemed more than happy to accept Rusty’s assistance. Krupp was more talkative than he looked; the entire time Rusty warmed him up he told the steamer about another component named Killerwatt who was waiting for them back at Electra’s yard. Rusty found he didn’t mind, and actually welcomed someone from Electra’s crew that was actually willing to talk to him besides CB.</p><p>“Pearl, would it be alright if you took front?” Rusty asked. “It’s easier for me to hitch this way, but if you prefer to be in the back, that’s fine!”</p><p>“It’s alright!” Pearl answered, “As long as Krupp is okay with me coupling to him?”</p><p>“Not a problem, Pearl!” Krupp said cheerily.</p><p>“This will be fun!” Pearl said, turning to Rusty, “You’ll be coupled to me for a change!”</p><p>Rusty didn’t even think of that and blushed a little at the thought.</p><p>Pearl coupled to Krupp, and Rusty coupled to Pearl. Rusty signed to Electra that he was ready, and Electra signed back that everyone up front was good to go, and away they went.</p><p>It wasn’t long on the road when Pearl heard the crackling of her own radio. She didn’t use it often, so she fumbled with it a bit before getting the receiver to work.</p><p>“Hello?”</p><p>“4-10, Pearl?”</p><p>“CB?”</p><p>“That’s me!”</p><p>She was glad to hear him so cheery given the state they found him in. He continued, “How’s Rusty’s going to handle all that melted snow when we hit our stack of bricks?”</p><p>“Honestly, I don’t know. He stayed outside last time we came back.”</p><p>There was silence on the radio for a bit. After a while Pearl got a response, “OK, 3s and 8s to you two!”</p><p>Pearl didn’t hear from him the rest of the trip.</p>
<hr/><p>Mama had found Belle sleeping on some ballast while chugging around the shed’s interior. She let the Rockies go when their spirits seemed brighter with warmth and being dry. Belle certainly looked alright, covered in her usual blanket and knick-knacks as she slept. A relaxed energy seemed to emanant from her that should could convince Mama that the blizzard was a collective dream of some sort.</p><p>Mama laid a hand on Belle and gently shook her. When she woke, Mama released a breath she didn’t know she was holding.</p><p>“Mornin’, Mama,” Belle blinked up at her tiredly.</p><p>“Way past morning, Belle,” Mama said automatically. This was a usual routine for them. “You really had me worried there when you didn’t say anything during roll call.”</p><p>“Fill me in, Mama, I was sleeping all day. Was there another race?”</p><p>“Babe, there’s a harsh blizzard outside. Did you really not notice?”</p><p>“I thought it was a bit chilly. But you’ve got nothing to worry about here with me, got all my blankets and such. And I’ve got you.”</p><p>Mama gave Belle a short and sweet kiss on the lips before reuniting with the rest of the freight and coach.</p><p>At first it wasn’t such a bad idea, giving everyone a chance to warm up with a ride with steam, but soon Mama was starting to slow down. The Rockies huddled around her and Dustin was hovering in orbit around them.</p><p>“Are you feeling alright, Mama?”</p><p>“Getting tired?”</p><p>“Need a rest?”</p><p>Mama waved them off, and her gaze drifted towards the shed entrance.</p><p>“It’s taking them an awful long time getting back,” she said.</p><p>As soon as those words left her mouth, the shed doors opened. Mama rushed to the doors followed behind by the Rockies, Dustin and even Flattop. But instead of Rusty and Pearl, in came Greaseball and Dinah. At the sight of the two, all the coaches swarmed around them welcoming Dinah and fawning over Greaseball.</p><p>“Where’s Rusty and Pearl?” Mama looked over Greaseball and Dinah, expecting to see the two following behind them.</p><p>“Something came up,” Greaseball answered vaguely.</p><p>“We got word from CB and Joule that Electra and his components were stuck in the storm, too,” Dinah elaborated. “They went to go pick them up.”</p><p>“Pick them up?” Mama repeated. “You mean they’re coming here?”</p><p>Dinah opened her mouth to speak and then stopped herself. It only just now occurred to her that she wasn’t sure where Rusty and Pearl would hitch and switch Electra and his crew. She just assumed they would follow them back to the Apollo Victoria. She looked to Greaseball for assistance, but he seemed distracted, so she turned back to Mama with a vague, “Maybe?”</p><p>Mama took a deep breath in and looked around the shed. “If that’s the case, it’s going to get pretty crowded. How many components follow Electra now?”</p><p>“With CB, there’s about 6? Maybe 7?”</p><p>“Oh boy.”</p><p>At this point Greaseball spoke up, “Hey, Mama, how do you fix rust?”</p><p>Mama looked up at him, “You have a rust problem, Greaseball? Pretty ironic, all things considering.”</p><p>Greaseball stiffened at that and looked like he was about to say something rude before thinking better of it. “It’s not for me, I—uh, was just…curious?”</p><p>Mama gave him a suspicious look, but answered his question anyway, “Well, a diesel like you should know rust is usually alleviated with oil, but around these parts we just use baking soda.” She jutted a thumb towards a shelf on the far wall where several boxes of baking soda and some metal wool brushes lay. Greaseball made a face at the brushes; they just seemed uncomfortable to use.</p><p>“Cool thanks,” he said, still looking distracted.</p><p>“You don’t have any rust on you, do you, Greaseball?” Dinah held his arm worriedly.</p><p>“Of course not, Dinah. Like I said, I was curious.”</p><p>As Greaseball waded through the crowd of coaches to be further in the shed, Mama stopped Dinah to ask her a question.</p><p>“How far did it seem Electra and his posse were?”</p><p>Dinah was about to answer with a guess when the shed doors opened again. Electra waltzed through followed by a long train of components with Pearl in the back.</p><p>“Well, speak of the devil,” Mama said under her breath. That’s when she noticed Greaseball had picked up one of the giant towels and was waiting by the shed’s entrance.</p><p>Pearl had entered attached to the back of Electra’s crew but Mama couldn’t see Rusty anywhere. She saw Greaseball roll his eyes and then reach outside of the shed, dragging the little steamer inside and wrapping him in the towel. Judging by the yelp and the wildly flailing limbs, Mama could tell Rusty wasn’t expecting that.</p><p>“Now don’t get the wrong idea,” Greaseball said, “I just owed ya one. Besides this was all CB’s—”</p><p>There’s a shrill <em>toooot!</em> and Mama could see a very ragged looking CB making a sharp hand signal in Greaseball’s direction.</p><p>“I mean,” Greaseball continued, “GB’s idea. It was me’s idea.” Rusty and Mama both gave the diesel a look as he fumbled over his words. Greaseball tossed Rusty a box of baking soda, “Look just take this and get cleaned up, okay?”</p><p>Electra had wrapped CB with another giant towel and the two were sitting together on the far wall. Greaseball joined them looking almost as exhausted.</p><p>“Hey, Electra.”</p><p>“Hey, Greaseball.”</p><p>Mama helped lead the toweled Rusty further into the crowded shed and gave the trio an amused glance. “Well, ain’t that a familiar sight?” she said loud enough for them to hear.</p><p>“Aw, but we didn’t even do anything this time!” CB whined, causing Mama to chuckle.</p><p>She was surprised to see one of Electra’s component slide up to her and start a conversation. Rusty introduced the component as “Wrench” and she had a lot to ask about what supplies the shed had, what she felt about converting wood to chrome, and a million other things. Overwhelmed by questions, Mama cast her gaze upwards only to catch the sight of Ashley, Flattop, and a dynamite truck sitting up in the rafters like that was a thing train cars could do.</p><p>“This is going to be a long night, Rusty,” she patted his back as if to reassure herself as much as him. “You should take the rest of the day off…somehow.”</p><p>Rusty laughed at that, and returned the back pat. The shed may be crowded, but with all this company it really felt like home.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I based this off of 1) my need for snow fluff stories and 2) that one story where there was a blizzard and only a steam train was still in operation to help out some stranded folks.</p><p>I hope you all enjoyed this little self-indulgent fic.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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